While cutting out patches either C&EI OR L&N applied to the lower ends of our troop sleeper I am finding the welded the patches with the welds right over the wood inside the walls. I am curious if anybody can tell me how they did this without setting the car on fire? There is a sleeper in Bowling Green KY with similar patches so I assume it is a railroad modification.

Thanks

It usually just smokes a little until the weld cools, also make sure the welder isn't set to high so your not burning through the metal. A fire watch is also good idea for at least a hour after your done welding.

Amen to that! We used a torch on our ex-U.S. Army Kitchen Car (USA #K-325)/C&EI #A-1054/MP #X15096 and there was a fire in the car after everyone had left the museum. Fortunately, the barking of the dog of one of our members who lives close to the museum, woke him up and his call to the North Judson Fire Department prevented a complete catastrophe, but we are paying now for the damage to the car in our restoration efforts.

Les

Roger that. They plated over the rusted metal. I am cutting all of it out and welding/bolting in new. So I may pull the wood and put it back in when we do the interior work. I started a small fire just cutting out the old metal without even using a torch.

Be Careful! Mid-Continent started a fire in the kitchen wall of Soo Line 2017 a few years ago, while just grinding rivet heads off with an angle grinder. Apparently the inside rivet heads were getting hot enough to start a fire.

Sound wood usually won't catch fire, or self extinguishes. On the other hand, punky rotten wood will smolder forever, and there is no way to tell what you have until you get the wall open. The old horse hair insulation is even worse... stinks as it burns, too.

I agree definetly agree with sound wood being harder to catch on fire! I've caught more things on fire using a torch to cut metal that everything else combined!

doing my own personal welding I keep a hose handy. The Pullman plant near here burned down because a flying piece of hot metal land on a pillar out of sight, smoldered and that took the building out. Big loss.

Wet down some rags underneath protecting the wood, smother the area with water as well.

After I weld I swash around with water anyways to cool things, the quick cool may harden up the metals better than a slow cool, old Junior high school hardening the metal trick.

We recently scrapped a car that had Hemp insulation in it under the flooring and in the walls and that stuff burned very fast! We weren't happy about having to scrap the car but by the time we were done everything was OK?

Hit work permits at work are 4 hours of fire watch. Always thought it was a little excessive but those unseen embers can smolder for hours in hard to reach places. Considering our plants are full of flammable pentaine and Polystyrene bead which can ignite with a static discharge, and has. It is a good precaution.

When I was young I once had the opportunity to remove by cutting with a torch some defect grab irons on a steel sheathed wooden sided car. I was told what to do and how to do it. The car was out on a rip track. After I cut the offending grab irons off and everything was well doused we left the scene. The next morning the car was a smoldering heap of metal and ashes. Much to the credit of the foreman, he said “Those damn high school kids and their damn beer parties!” Nothing more was said, a shame to have lost the car. Anyway use lots of soapy water (helps wet he wood), do your hot work early in the shift, and set a fire watch for a reasonable time.

In the "things to worry about" category, I'll add one more to the pile. When working on a steel car, the gap between the outer and inner walls forms an excellent flue.

We had some work done on a steel baggage car once, by an outside party. Volunteers were set to leave at the end of the day, and the last one to pass by the work area noticed smoke. The combination of horse hair insulation, and the natural flue between the walls, caused a fast-growing fire with an exceptional draft. In fact, the draft was so strong that we were able to fight it effectively by firing a garden hose up into the wall, from below.

After several hours of wetting the car down, and watching closely, we left. The car was saved, with only the horse hair insulation, and a little paint damaged. But if the fire had taken just a couple more minutes to kindle, the car would have been badly burned.

JR

Sites like this have made good points; but the one I have most often read is old horse hair in upholstery or insulated walls inside a Pullman car.

Apparently the old stuff smolders for a long time before it gets around to catching fire.

Beware!

ted 66